White Sox supervisor Will Venable tells James Fegan of Sox Machine that Miguel Vargas is seen because the membership’s major possibility at third base. He’s taking part in a little bit of first base in camp as nicely however will largely line up on the sizzling nook.
Vargas, 25, turned a key piece of the roster final summer time. Previous to final yr’s deadline. the Sox lined up a three-team commerce with the Dodgers and Cardinals. Chicago gave up Erick Fedde, Michael Kopech, Tommy Pham and money in that deal. In return, they obtained three minor leaguers, with Vargas being extra of a high-profile addition than Alexander Albertus or Jeral Perez.
Just a few years in the past, Vargas was a high 100 prospect. Baseball America gave him the #29 spot going into 2023. That’s largely on account of his enormous numbers towards minor league pitching, although he hasn’t but translated that to the majors. He has hit .175/.273/.312 in 591 large league plate appearances so far.
However over the previous three years, he has hit .297/.412/.512 in 996 Triple-A appearances. That was within the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League however his 15.6% stroll charge and 16.7% strikeout charge in that point have been each nice and wRC+ nonetheless thought of him to be 31% higher than league common.
Defensively, Vargas primarily performed third base on his means up the minor league ladder, although the Dodgers moved him across the diamond. That was partially to enhance his possibilities of cracking their crowded roster but additionally as a result of his protection on the sizzling nook hasn’t been particularly extremely rated. He frolicked at second base, first base and left area.
After buying him final yr, the Sox gave him 36 begins at third and one in left. They overhauled their workers since then, bringing in Venable to be the brand new supervisor in 2025. It appears the brand new skipper doesn’t change the plan and they’ll give Vargas some run on the sizzling nook and see the way it goes. Clearly, making offensive strides on the main league stage goes to be vital for Vargas however discovering a viable defensive house can be going to be key. Now is an effective time for the Sox to experiment, since they clearly haven’t any hope of contending within the close to time period after their traditionally dangerous season in 2024. Vargas continues to be beneath management for 5 years, so there’s a while to provide you with a transparent reply.
The Sox signed infielder Josh Rojas to a one-year, $3.5MM deal final month. He has performed extra third base than another place in his profession, over 2,000 innings, however has over 1,000 innings at second as nicely. He’s additionally dabbled within the outfield corners, at shortstop and first base.
Maybe Rojas will find yourself securing the second base job, if Vargas is at third. He can have some competitors from Lenyn Sosa, although Sosa has hit simply .229/.257/.347 in his large league profession so far and will get pushed right into a bench/utility job. Rookie Colson Montgomery might maybe take the Opening Day shortstop job. Infielders Jacob Amaya, Brooks Baldwin and Bryan Ramos are additionally on the 40-man roster with Brandon Drury and Nick Maton offering some non-roster depth.
Elsewhere on the roster, right-hander Prelander Berroa has been recognized with a grade 1 elbow pressure, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Merkin says “it seems as if” Berroa can keep away from Tommy John surgical procedure “within the brief time period,” with subsequent steps to be decided.
Berroa, 25 in April, got here to the Sox as a part of the Gregory Santos commerce a few yr in the past. He has a 3.05 earned run common in 20 2/3 innings so far in his profession between the M’s and White Sox. Management has been a problem, with a 17.6% stroll charge within the large leagues so far. Nonetheless, he’s additionally proven enormous strikeout stuff, punching out 31.9% of main league hitters confronted.
Clearly, a Tommy John surgical procedure can be unwelcome, resulting in an absence of over a yr. The Sox will discover different choices in the interim to see if there’s a approach to get him again on the mound that doesn’t contain a surgeon’s scalpel.
